{"product_id":"the_essential_dolly_parton","title":"The Essential Dolly Parton","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe Essential Dolly Parton is a 2005 two-disc, 37-track career retrospective that traces Parton’s development from her first Monument-era successes to her early-2000s return to bluegrass. Beginning with “Dumb Blonde” and “Just Because I’m a Woman,” it follows her rise through the classic 1970s recordings that established her as a singular country songwriter: “Coat of Many Colors,” “My Tennessee Mountain Home,” “Jolene,” and the original “I Will Always Love You.” The compilation gives substantial space to the formative material behind her later fame, showing how closely her artistry was rooted in Appalachian memory, plainspoken emotional writing, and traditional country melody.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe second half follows her move into pop-country crossover with hits such as “Here You Come Again,” “Heartbreaker,” “9 to 5,” “Tennessee Homesick Blues,” and “Why’d You Come in Here Lookin’ Like That.” It also includes key collaborations—“Please Don’t Stop Loving Me” with Porter Wagoner, “Islands in the Stream” with Kenny Rogers, and “To Know Him Is to Love Him” with Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris—as well as the bluegrass recording “Shine.” More detailed than a standard hits package, The Essential Dolly Parton functions as a broad musical biography, balancing signature singles with songs that reveal her range as a storyteller, vocalist, duet partner, and interpreter of country and roots traditions.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Record Store","offers":[{"title":"CD \/ 2CD - Gold Series","offer_id":53959101055290,"sku":"39830","price":25.99,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":false},{"title":"CD \/ 2CD","offer_id":53959248707898,"sku":"39844","price":16.99,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/2041\/0682\/files\/Screenshot_2026-08-25_at_5.44.28_PM.jpeg?v=1787696919","url":"https:\/\/recordstore.ca\/products\/the_essential_dolly_parton","provider":"Record Store","version":"1.0","type":"link"}